Our Experience and Key Takeaways from Dublin's World Post & Parcel 2019
Some key takeaways about delivery and customer experience from World Post & Parcel 2019 in Dublin. We also won an award!
“Regarded as the ‘Oscars’ of the mail and express industry, the World Post & Parcel Awards receives applications from some of the greatest delivery brands from around the world.”
Our founder and CCO Dana von der Heide was in Dublin this month to attend the World Post & Parcel Awards. We’re beyond excited to say that we’ve won the award under the Startup category for our e-commerce logistics software!
Beyond the awards, Dana also met key players in the parcel and postal industry and exchange insights on the e-commerce landscape, including our friends from IMDA who were also a finalist in the Postal E-Commerce category. We’ve compiled our key highlights from World Post and Parcel in this article:
Jeremy Folkes from Escher shared how technology can optimize the last mile and first-mile delivery
Technology plays an important role in reducing operational costs in the delivery process as it:
Enables the quick identification and tracking of parcels
Reduces dwell time through proactive picked up / dropped off delivery notifications
Helps delivery drivers find locations more quickly and assists in navigation
Smoothens the process of getting proof of delivery and can assist with damaged items
Enables the automated process of controlling parcel lockers; ensuring swift allocation, opening or closing of
The smart use of technology improves the customer experience for everyone involved. It promotes convenience, flexibility and enables full transparency over the entire delivery process. Especially in today’s instant gratification generation where consumers demand speedy, interactive and flexible delivery experiences after checkout, we couldn’t agree more.
Mike Richmond from Doddle also highlighted the importance of e-commerce data to improve operational efficiency and shared key stats on delivery
Retailers are pushing for optimization efforts in the customer experience they provide. Yet, the basics still matter.
“The fundamentals of a positive retail experience — speed, convenience, consistency, and friendliness — are challenging to get right” – David Clarke, Retail Touchpoints.
Keeping these fundamentals in mind when optimizing both the in-store and delivery experiences is therefore essential.
The rise of alternate delivery preferences amongst millennials:
Data from UPS showed that while deliveries to residences still reigned supreme, alternative options like in-store pickup, picking up from authorized drop-off points like parcel lockers and delivery to workplaces are on the rise.
Why delivery matters in the customer experience:
In his presentation, Mike shared some key statistics from Royal Mail Delivery Matters 2018’s report on the importance of delivery and how it influences consumer’s purchasing decisions:
74% of shoppers feel more confident ordering online when they are able to track their orders
7/10 shoppers who abandon cart will not revisit the store.
74% of consumers are likely to shop again with a specific retailer if they have a good delivery experience.
56% of US consumers feel let down during the holidays due to issues in the post-purchase experience.
Customers expect proactive updates on their delivery:
9/10 people agree that receiving information about the delivery of their purchase is important
42% of cart abandonment is caused by delivery costs
50% of customers expect to be informed if there’s a delay to delivery
3 in 4 shoppers think it’s important to receive updates on the progress of their delivery
70% of shoppers expect to be able to track delivery progress through a carrier app.
“Let’s not forget about the joy of receiving a parcel” – Mike Richmond, Doddle
Customer experience data will shape the future of e-commerce.
Data like tracking information, purchase history, delivery exceptions, and customer inquiries is essential in creating meaningful connections with customers. Offer consistent and trustworthy communication to build long-term relationships.
Finally, Dana shared some insights on the power of data for logistics carriers
The world has seen exponential growth in the quantity of data. 90% of the data in the world was generated over the last two years.
Consider the typical data situation of a mid- to large-sized online retailer:
They have operations globally and work with multiple logistics partners, each with their own way of structuring and presenting e-commerce data
A single parcel’s
could involve between 2-3 logistics carriers
Data can even come in different languages or metrics
Multiply this scenario across multiple markets or partners and the potential for chaos is immense! Hence, refining and staying on top of your quality of data generated is key for making data-driven decisions.
Used correctly, data has the ability to predict future behavior, observe trends, and help make smarter, calculated decisions. Getting started need not be intimidating or challenging; partner with technology providers like us who can help you address these challenges.
“Embracing change requires a concerted effort and mindset within the organizations to successfully drive this. I urge logistics companies to establish a data mindset in all their departments – may it be operations, commercial or IT functions. I also like to encourage them to look externally while embracing innovation as it is very often an outside-in approach from different industries that helps unveil new perspectives.” - Dana von der Heide
Dana also did a separate interview with the World Post and Parcel where she shares some thoughts on the future of the industry, read it here.
World Post and Parcel was a fruitful experience for us at Parcel Perform:
We're honored to receive this prestigious recognition in the industry – this drives us to push even more innovation in our product to continue serving our customers in new ways. To close off June, our team will also be IRCE in Chicago, drop us a message if you happen to be there!
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